His eyes gleam bright gold as he watches me. When I’m done, I take a step back, my cheeks flushing with embarrassment over what I just did. That was…strange. What’s even stranger is that I’d gladly take another handful if he offered it.

But he doesn’t. Instead, he moves forward toward me, and before I realize what he’s doing, he presses his mouth to mine.

Or rather, he presses his face to mine. It doesn’t feel like a kiss, not even remotely. Baffled, I stand completely still as he rubs the lower half of his face against mine. What is he doing?

Then he growls low in his throat, and the sound isn’t angry. Rather, it’s low…and pleased. He grabs me by the shoulders and turns me around, pushing me forward. I grab the edge of the tub to steady myself, and as I do, he tugs at the waistband of my half-torn-away jeans and rips them completely off.

Oh God. I know where this is headed.

I bite the inside of my cheek and stand still, my eyes closed. Dread and loathing fill my mind. This dragon wants sex—and I shouldn’t be surprised. Claudia said hers wanted a mate. It isn’t any different for this one.

Thing is, I’m not interested in a mate.

I hate sex. I hate being touched. I hate all of it, and I have Tate to thank for that.

But even Tate wasn’t like this. With Tate, I knew what I was getting into. It was my choice, every time. I was the one who walked to the barracks and sold myself. If nothing else, I was in control of that part. This?

I have zero control. I have zero say in the matter. He’s going to take me whether I want it or not.

And I’ve got a broken arm and bruised ribs and a wound on my side that aches even as he pulls me backward and positions my hips. This guy is a dragon. He’s taller than me, built with muscle, and incredibly strong. He’s got me captive up here. To fight him would be a death wish.

So I won’t fight. I need to stay alive.

Still, I can’t help the tears that slide down my cheeks. Just put up with it until it’s over, I remind myself. You can go to your happy place and zone out for a while. This won’t last forever, and it’s the only way to survive.

I feel him rub the length of his cock—thick, hard, and hot—against the crease of my backside. That invasive touch shatters any hope of going to my happy place. I can’t. I’m too freaked out. I gasp out a sob, unable to help myself.

The dragon goes still behind me.

I freeze, sucking in a breath. I’m terrified I’ve somehow made him mad with my crying. Tate liked tears, but what if this guy—this dragon—views it as an insult? I need to stop. I sniff and rub my face against my sleeve, trying to compose myself, but then a hiccup escapes my throat, and I can’t stop crying.

Even after all these years in the After, years of doing anything and everything to survive, I have my limits. I still feel small and unsafe and vulnerable, and I hate it as much as I hate his touch.

My humiliation grows when I can feel him drop to his knees behind me. He grabs my ass and buries his face between my thighs, inhaling deeply.

God.

But then he stands. Hands touch my shoulders. They’re scorching hot like the rest of the dragon-man’s skin, and he straightens me and turns me to face him. I flinch, expecting the worst.

The look on his face isn’t one of anger, but confusion. His eyes flicker black, and he raises a hand to my cheek, wiping away my tears with gentle fingers. He studies the wetness on his hand, then lifts it to his mouth to taste it and gives me a curious look.

“Sorry,” I sniffle. “I just…I’m scared. I know what you want, and I swear I’ll try to be accommodating, but I’m not ready. I need a little more time, okay?”

DAKH

The human female leaks from her eyes again. I know what it means now, because it is accompanied by her fear-scent.

She is scared. She is scared of my touch.

I smelled her cunt and there is not a hint of need in her body. If I touched her, it would not be because she wanted it. It would be because she was too afraid to say no.

I do not understand. I thought I did the human mating signal. I pressed my face to hers, and she accepted it. Why does she not wish to mate? Do I still do something wrong?

Her eyes water more, and she looks sad. It hurts me to see that. It hurts me to think that she is scared of me when I want nothing more than to please her. I caress her soft cheek and wonder what it is I need to do to make her welcome my touch. My cock aches and my fangs burn with the need to give her my venom, but I will not force her to bend to me. There is a difference between a mating battle and simply conquering a female without her permission. To do so is appalling.

The female says something in that soft voice of hers, and she sounds sad. I stroke her cheek again, frustrated. If we had the mental bond between mates, she would understand me and I her. But until we mate and I give her my fires, we are strangers. And as long as she is covered in her fear-scent, she will never challenge me.

Humans are…difficult.

Rid yourself of her, the ravens whisper, swooping into my mind once more. The human hive has more females. Take one of those. Rend this one with your claws.

I growl at them, because the very thought makes me angry. I would never hurt her. She is the female I have chosen. I want no other.

The female goes still, her eyes wide with fear at my growl. I have to bite back another one of pure frustration because it was not intended for her. Again, I wish for the bond in our minds. I must go to Kael, I think, and ask him how he brought his female into a mating heat when she will not change to battle form. I must—

Defend, cry the ravens, even as I smell it—an intruder.

An interloper.

Someone thinks to take my female from me.

The snarl of rage that bursts from my chest comes with flame.

5

SASHA

The dragon-man pulls away from me with an angry snarl and a rush of flame rising from his throat.

I draw back, startled, wondering what I did to cause him to change moods like that. A moment later, I hear a faint, angry cry—that of a dragon. And then I grow cold with fear.

Another dragon.

Before I can blink, the dragon-man takes two leaping steps away, and then he erupts into a flash of golden wing and lashing tail. He can transform so fast. I stare as he takes to the air, sailing off the ledge and out into the sky.